Ogilvy: Be you – Dove promotes individuality via underarms

January 12, 2020

I began watching Ogilvy’s new campaign for Dove with a very bad attitude. I’m mightily sick of Dove telling women what they can do and should be – even if it’s to make women feel good about themselves. But this commercial won me [:ed]. Dove seems to have moved on from the idea that we women are all pathetic creatures with low self-esteem and, while the campaigns are self-serving, that’s only really apparent if you Google search “Dove + underarms”. Then you’ll find Dove posts like, “Why we should take care of our underarms,” “How to get smooth underarms,” and “Dove damage control for underarms”. Dove YouTube videos educate women that “Dove anti-perspirant cares for your underarm skin like never before,” and tells them how to “Reveal beautiful underarms with Dove deodorant.”

But right now Dove is promoting individuality via underarms.

As usual, the campaign idea came from a study. That 88% of women feel society promotes an “ideal” underarm is probably true. Kath Swallow, global brand vice-president, Dove deodorants at Unilever, commented, “It’s so inspiring to see such a confident group of women share their underarm stories in such a powerful way. It’s a seemingly small element of our bodies, but as our study shows, the pressure for them to look a certain way can affect self-esteem and confidence.

“We hope as the campaign rolls out, others will be inspired to feel confident and embrace their underarms however they are or however they choose to have them.”

Dede Laurentino, chief creative officer at Ogilvy UK, stated, “Sharing powerful stories and showcasing a real purpose has always been at the heart of Dove. Women’s underarms have been close to a taboo for too long. I’m happy to see Dove addressing the topic in such a liberating way.”

Clearly Dove’s mission via Ogilvy to improve women is working for the brand. It has been going for more than a decade.